The Ontario government was blindsided by Chrysler’s stunning U-turn on demanding up to $700 million in federal and provincial handouts, says Premier Kathleen Wynne.

Wynne said Wednesday she was “very taken aback” when Chrysler Group LLC chairman and chief executive officer Sergio Marchionne advised that the automaker would go it alone.

The premier said her officials and Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s government had been working closely to ensure the company keeps its operations in Brampton and in Windsor.

“I was very surprised by the letter that I received yesterday. I was very surprised that this was the tack that was taken,” she told reporters at Queen’s Park.

While Wynne said she was “pleased” Chrysler has committed to investing in its minivan factory in Windsor, she admitted to some uncertainty over Brampton.

“I don’t know what the future holds. The concern is that there are question marks about the future,” the premier said.

That’s because without any government money, Chrysler is not bound to provide any job guarantees.

“It would be my preference that we have a good working relationship — in conjunction with the federal government — with members of the automakers’ industry. This is an important industry to the province.”

Wynne said negotiations by Ottawa and Queen’s Park with Chrysler had not yet reached a point where job guarantees had been discussed so she “would love to know” why things went off the rails.

On Tuesday, Marchionne said the company was fed up being used as “a political football.”

That was a reference to Progressive Conservative Leader Tim Hudak’s attack on the firm holding government’s hostage by demanding a “nine-figure ransom” that’s tantamount to “corporate welfare.”

While Hudak — who has repeatedly said profit-making giants don’t need such handouts — wasn’t at Queen’s Park on Wednesday, his stance was much discussed.

Although Marchionne, who is Canadian, said the company’s “commitment to Canada remains strong,” the manufacturer wants flexibility in the future.

He noted competition for auto jobs is hot with lower-cost jurisdictions in the U.S. and Mexico offering incentives to relocate there.

Chrysler had been seeking up to $700 million in public money toward its $3.6 billion investment in the two Ontario plants that employ 8,000 workers.

“It is clear to us that our projects are now being used as a political football, a process that, in our view, apart from being unnecessary and ill-advised, will ultimately not be to the benefit of Chrysler,” the firm said Tuesday.

In 2009, Chrysler received an $800 million bailout from Ottawa and Queen’s Park that has since been repaid, though the company’s predecessor has other loans outstanding.

“What bothers me is Chrysler weighs with me this morning the comments Hudak made,” Dias told Newstalk 1010 radio in Toronto on Wednesday.

“They said: ‘Listen, we are nervous about investing in a province where you have potentially a premier that has no understanding of the auto industry and says he won’t support it.’ They raised that with me this morning. That was the first thing they raised with me this morning that they can’t believe the foolishness of his remarks,” the union leader said.

In Ottawa, federal Industry Minister James Moore agreed “it certainly came as a surprise to us.”

“We’ve been, I think, quite generous and open with our support of Canada’s auto industry. So they made a decision to push away from the table for now principally because of concerns with the political dynamic of the province of Ontario . . . you know, concerns about whether or not this is an election year.”

With files from Rob Ferguson and Dana Flavelle

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